Sickos

So, from the looks of the blog, you'd probably say everyone looks in good spirits and good health. Unfortunately, that has not been the case this week. Seth got some nasty upper respiratory thing going on over the weekend and Ellie came down with a 103 fever very, very early Monday morning. She's been battling the fever and a cough ever since. I took her to the doctor yesterday and she said El's got an ear infection along with this upper respiratory virusy thing. We've pretty much holed up for the week - even the weather's been kinda nasty - and are determined to get through this. I haven't slept well since Saturday night, so I'm hoping I won't get this bug next... and I'm working very hard today to keep my frustration level down and my patience up.

Eleanor and I tried to take a walk with our neighbor this morning and it quickly turned into tears and a refusal to stay in her stroller. So, I carried her, about a mile home. Miserable. Once we returned home it took me about half and hour to get her settled down. I don't think we'll try to go out again today. Unfortunate for my running, hopefully the best thing for Eleanor.

Eleanor's Latest Recipe

Breakfast Soup

Collect:
1 Baby Food Jar
1 Spoon
1 Sippy Cup of juice
1 Pacifier
A smattering of Rice Chex
Oatmeal

Begin by spooning a bit of oatmeal into the baby food jar. Stir. Add a few rice chex. Smash with the spoon. Stir. Add a few more rice chex. Pour in a few drops of juice. Smash and stir. Take a few bites to test the consistancy. Add more juice as needed. Drop in the pacifier. Stir very well. Taste again. Enjoy!

Basket Play

One of Ellie's favorite games these days is climbing in and out of baskets. We have several throughout the house and she loves pulling everything out, adding new items and climbing in and out herself. This one is probably her favorite. It holds all her socks and shoes. Socks and shoes are her favorite because putting them on means we get to go outside!

Happy Breakfast

Mixing and mashing... she's a crazy, messy, happy eater these days. I'm a crazy, giving 2 baths a day mom these days! And, is it just me, or does she suddenly look a whole lot older all of a sudden!?

Revelations

I realized 3 important things about myself this afternoon:
I am a runner
I am a blogger
I am from Wyoming

All three came about as I was out for a run. I think, before I left, I would have called it a jog. That's the first important point. It was intended to be an "easy 4-miler" as prescribed by my training plan. Yesterday I ran a long, hard, fast and hilly tempo run that really trashed my legs. I was hemming and hawing about whether or not I should actually go for this run, or if I should skip it and run it tomorrow. I took a look at the weather report. Today was overcast and had a slight chance of rain, but tomorrow it's supposed to snow again. That, paired with the fact that I'm a measly 3 miles away from logging the first 200 miles of my training, motivated me into my sneakers and out the door.

A mile into the run I heard thunder cracking. I thought, "Hmm. Maybe I should have worn long sleeves." Then it started to rain... possibly not all that bad except for the 20 mph wind that accompanied it. So here's the thing: I could have turned around right then and there, but I didn't. I thought, "I want to get to 200 miles." I headed down Sparrowhawk Hill. By the time I reached the bottom, it was snowing. Snowing. And blowing hard into my face as I turned to muscle my way back up the ridiculously steep slope. Then I thought, "Well, I got myself into this mess. I better just run faster." By the time I was about 1.5 miles from home it was hailing. My face hurt, the wind stung my cheeks and threatened to push me back down the hill and what was I doing? Blogging in my head. No joke. It's what got me home.

By the time I'd thought through all the weird, cold and intense weather I've already run through, I felt like I was pretty hard-core. I also realized that I NEVER would have run in these conditions in Oregon. I would have used weather as my excuse not to get out every time. I also would have been ridiculously bundled up. Here in Wyoming, though, I've run in a tank top and shorts when it's only 38 degrees. The biggest thing about Wyoming weather is that it changes quickly. I've become the queen of layers (except of course today), I've accepted strong winds, and I'm deciding to embrace the transitions between scorching sunshine and stinging snow as character building - or maybe character breaking-down. I think Wyoming weather is actually, in a strange sort of way, forcing me to become much more flexible and go-with-the-flow than I've ever been before. Or maybe it's Eleanor... the world may never know.

A Little Kitty Lovin'

Eleanor and the cat continue to get more acquainted as the days go by... She really loves him. I'm not sure I can say the same about him, though... Lately she's wanted to lay down on him. For some reason, Pekoe's not quite as excited as she is about that idea... but, he puts up with her patting, pulling and resting much better than I ever expected.

Gettin' Daddy Wet

Ellie recently discovered that flinging a wet washcloth around results in flying water drops. She thinks it's really funny to get us wet. Of course, this now makes baths even more delightful for us big people who are fully clothed during the process. :)

The Perfect Activity...

... for mom to do LOTS of laundry.

Eleanor sat, stood, lay down in, climbed in and out of, shut herself into, and hid and found items in this suitcase for a good 35 minutes. This stage of development where she loves to walk and climb as well as discover everything is really fun. She pulled laundry from my folded piles and put it into the suitcase - went away and found something else interesting to look at - and then "found" the laundry in the suitcase and brought it back to me. She was very serious about her "helping." The best part, though, was watching her shut herself into the case (it's just the right size for her) and then peek out at me and giggle.

"Stand up to be tall...

Sit down to be small."

Those are the words imprinted in Eleanor's step stool. Yesterday she figured out how to climb up on it and reach the items in the 3rd drawer up. Doesn't she look pleased with herself?


While I prepare lunch, Ellie often "chills" on her stool. She sits down on it and leans back against the wall. Then she "chats" with me. I love it.

Hilarious

So this was the only picture that we took on Saturday... Silly girl in her car seat. We had given her a banana (totally her favorite) and let her munch away. She was content for a really long time. Eventually, however, she finished eating and playing with the peel and decided she needed to "wear" it. You can't see it in the picture, because I couldn't get the right angle from the front seat, but she pulled the peel over her head and had it draped over her shoulders. You can tell she's proud of herself and knows she's being silly!

Ellie often "wears" things like this. Although, usually not things that are quite so messy... She wanders around the house, collecting favorite objects: hats, headbands, sweaters, jackets and then puts them "on." Since she's still not quite coordinated enough to actually get a hat on her head on a regular basis, the clothing items end up draped around her shoulders. She just continues happily on her way like this until the object falls off (or in the case of the banana peel, we take it away). Then she finds another item of clothing to "wear."

What a Day!

Yesterday we packed up the car and headed to Billings, MT early in the morning. Eleanor slept almost the whole way while Seth and I had a chance to talk (for some reason we always talk more or more deeply or something when we're traveling). Then we met up with Amanda, Joel and Kayli, and Amanda and I ran a 5k at MSU Billings. It was a fun run and a good way to start the day. I could have done without the crazy mountain west wind, though!

After the run we hung out on campus for a while, let Ellie run around and changed for the day. Then we headed over to CJ's Bar and Grill to meet up with Joel's sister and her family. It's kind of fun to be at a table with an 11 month old, a 10 month old, a 4 year old, a 10 year old and 6 adults.

Then, we decided to take advantage of being in a "big" city. :) As always happens when we head to Billings, we went shopping. First we stopped by Sports Authority, then made our way to the mall to check out Scheel's, American Eagle, GAP and Gymboree. Then we headed over to a kids clothes consignment/second hand shop. After that we hit up Old Navy (where Seth is an amazing clearance rack shopper!) and Costco.

By the time we left Costco, Eleanor was definitely acting hungry and it was close to 6 pm. So, we took advantage of one of our favorite places in Billings: Hu Hot. Now, I know this whole post is going to seem really silly to so many of you who currently live in highly populated places, but seriously, it was a day full of special events. Quite fun and very yummy.

Ellie fell asleep in the car right about bedtime, so we had a quiet drive home. It was nice to feel like our journey was bringing us "home." As much as we like Sheridan, it's taken quite a while for me to feel really connected to our place here. I think it will still take a bit more time to get really used to the trip from here to Billings (or Casper), but I was grateful to feel hopeful and like our trip was finished as we pulled into our driveway.

Big Girl Dishes

Ellie got to pick out big girl bowls, spoons and forks at the store a few days ago. She was thrilled that I let her do the choosing. Meal times these days are certainly an adventure! She must be thrown in the tub after eating, but she just loves doing it herself. As you can see from the following pictures, she still has some work to do to be proficient with wielding a spoon, but she certainly doesn't want us big people to interfere - she'll always figure out a way to get the job done. :)

The Progression

Eleanor loves to play outside. Unfortunately, lately it's been cold, drizzly and overcast... but 2 days ago Ellie brought me my shoes... one at a time... insisted I put them on. Then she brought me her shoes - two matching shoes - and sat down in my lap. So, I put them on her. Then she walked to the front door and started waving "bye-bye."

I was so impressed that despite the grey drizzle of the afternoon, we bundled up and headed outside. She enjoyed playing in our rock pile as always and this time even had to bring a couple back inside with her.

Silly girl!

More Easter Pics

Easter was a beautiful, warm day here in Sheridan. We enjoyed making Resurrection Cookies, going to church, making Ellie a little egg hunt and taking lots of photos. We were thankful for the good family time since Seth is out of town this week.

Thank you Lindsey and Peyton for the beautiful dress! Eleanor enjoyed wearing it to church and I continue to enjoy all the fun pictures we now have of her in it. :)

Dear Daddy,

Just in case you're able to check the internet, I thought I'd tell you about the last couple of days. Pretty much, I've been into everything and haven't stopped moving unless I'm asleep. It's really fun!

Yesterday I got to feed myself breakfast. I love using a spoon!
Then we ran out of bananas. (The worst imaginable thing!) So, mom whipped up a batch of pumpkin-applesauce-oat muffins. They were delicious! I haven't even complained about not having any bananas since!I promise, I've been doing a good job of sleeping. See:

I took a great long nap in the afternoon so mom could do this:

She's a lot happier now that her closet is organized and the oversized stuff that wouldn't fit in the kitchen cupboards is off the counters. She wants me to let you know that she's really thankful that you were able to install the shelves before you left.

At dinner last night I refused to let Kayli feed me without having a spoon and jar to myself. (I know, that's being difficult, but it's so much fun!) I filled my jar with chicken pieces and Os and then discovered that I could pour my water into it as well. Fascinating! It's really cool to mash all that stuff up with a spoon, too.

Anyway, I miss you lots. Please come home soon.

Love, Eleanor

Jibber Jabber

Ellie has decided bath time is a good time to practice talking. We stick her in and she just goes and goes. The last week or so she's started to wash the walls of the tub with her washcloth, meanwhile jabbering away. It seems that each night she's practicing different sounds, although she has established a few "comments" that repeat themselves throughout her days.

This video was taken a week or so ago and I kept meaning to ask Seth how to rotate the picture... but now he's away in Dallas and I'm ready to post. I did figure out how to edit it down in length - so you have a nice 30 seconds or so instead of the 10 minutes she went on! Anyway, you'll just have to cock your head to the side. It's really all about the sound anyway. :o)

The Egg Hunt